Does your child tattle to get siblings in trouble? Does this happen several times a day? Do you react to tattling? Does it unsettle your inner peace? If so, look inside to see how the family meeting can help.

If you have a Tilly the Tattle in your house, how do you get her to change? How can you get her to understand the difference between tattling and keeping her siblings safe? Let’s find out how questions during the family meeting help.

Family Meeting

Discuss tattling without pointing to the biggest tattletales in your house. Pretend you’re talking about an imagined child. You might use these questions to help your kids discuss tattling:

What do tattletales need to know?

How do kids feel when a tattletale tells on them?

Do kids want to play with the tattletales? Why?

Are parents or teachers pleased with tattletales?

What do tattletales really want? Why?

If you’ve ever tattled, how do kids treat you after you tattle on them?

What advice would you give a tattletale?

Asking the above questions will help your tattletales think before they tattle. Ask if they are just tattling to get their sibling in trouble or to be safe. Remind them about your tattletale discussion when they tattle.

Keeping the minutes in your Family Meeting Diarycan be fun to read in the years to come. They’ll remind you of how you helped your children grow.

How do you stop your tattletale from tattling? Please share. We want to know.

Want to have your comments, questions, tips, and first name included in my next Family Meeting eBook? Just leave your comments below.

If spelling or grammar are problem, don't worry. I'll do the editing. To assure you of quality no links or objectionable material will be included.

Do your kids love to cook? Most kids do. Look inside for parenting tips on how to help them.

"After a good dinner one can forgive anybody, even one's own relations." – Oscar Wilde

Family Fun – Kids Discuss What to Cook

After you’ve taught kids how to use knives, operate the oven, and measure ingredients, what’s next? How about working side by side with you? Let them watch. Show them how. Give them small tasks. Hold a family meeting to plan a family meal.

Family Meeting

Help your kids discuss what food they like. Make sure the meal is one each child can help prepare.

Ask Your Kids:

What do you want to prepare?

Who will print the ingredients?

Who wants to go to the store?

Who will do the chopping?

Who will cook the food?

Who will set the table, clear the table, or wash the dishes?

Will there be candles, music, decorations?

When will the dinner be?

Let them share all their ideas. Feel their enthusiasm. They may argue a little while preparing the meal. That’s OK. Once the meal is ready they’ll forgive each other. Feel their pride. Give them the praise they deserve.

Do you tell your child to do one thing and he forgets? How can you get him to remember what you said? Concentration is like a camera for the ears. It takes pictures that last.

"He has the attention span of a lightning bolt."- Robert Redford

Family Fun – Try These

Play concentration games within the family meeting. Memory, jigsaw puzzles, checkers, and chess can help. Make up matching games like taking 7 different size beads, coins, or rocks. Arrange them on the table. Tell your child to take a mental picture of them. Mix them up. Ask your child to put them back in the same order. (You can use less or more than 7 depending on the age of your child.)

Family Meeting

Praise and say, “Good!” or clap when your child gets them correct.

As you play, ask, “What do you make your brain remember?”

Listen carefully. Remember what he said.

If he says, “I don’t know.” Tell him, “Guess.” Wait until he does.

Write it down in your Family Meeting Diary.

Family fun and family meetings go together like cameras and pictures. They fit. You can build your child’s concentration power and create family meetings that guide your child. He’ll love it and you will too.

One more thing, remember to use his words to remind him how he made his brain remember. It will help the next time you tell him to do something.

How do you help your child concentrate? Please share.

Want to have your comments, questions, tips, and first name included in my next Family Meeting eBook? Just leave your comments below.

If spelling or grammar are problem, don't worry. I'll do the editing. To assure you of quality no links or objectionable material will be included.

Your kids will have lots to say about blaming. They see it at school, in the neighborhood, and maybe they’ll see it in themselves too.

The Family Meeting

Let’s use Billy the Blamer’s story from BackTalk Street. Here are some questions to consider for your family meeting:

What’s wrong with Billy blaming others for his mistakes?

How do you feel when someone blames you for something you didn’t do? Why?

How do you think other kids feel when you blame them? Why?

Is admitting a mistake better than blaming? Why?

What advice would you give a blamer?

Your kids will have lots to say about blaming. They see it at school, in the neighborhood, and maybe they’ll see it in themselves too.

To avoid your child from becoming defensive, discuss blaming by reading a short story about it. This means you won’t be directing the conversation at your child’s behavior and he’ll feel freer to share his thoughts.

Key Idea: When you know how your child thinks, you’ll be better able to help him. Why? Because building character starts with getting your kids to talk.

One more thing, remember to set up a weekly time for holding family meetings. You’ll enjoy the meetings and you’ll be building character in your child.

Pick upCharacter Building on BackTalk Street.It has games, puzzles, stickers and discussion stories about the kids and their misbehaviors on BackTalk Street. Read the stories at your family meetings. Enjoy the discussions.

All these family meeting blogs will become a Family Meeting eBook. Do you want to have your comments, questions, tips, and first name included? Just leave your comments below.

If spelling or grammar are problem, don't worry. I'll do the editing. To assure you of quality no links or objectionable material will be included.

Kids with self-respect have character and discipline. Character is a force of gravity. It keeps kids grounded. Respect is the fruit of character and discipline. So how do you help your kids respect themselves and build character too?

Self-respect is the fruit of discipline; the sense of dignity grows with the ability to say no to oneself. – Abraham J. Heschel

The Family Meeting Increases Family Values

Compare your kids to a beautiful evergreen tree. Its roots are surrounded by rich soil. That soil is your family values. To keep your kids grounded, healthy, and strong, they must be loyal to their family values.

Discuss your family values within the Family Meeting

What are family values?

How is self-respect a family value?

What is self-discipline?

How does self-discipline increase self-respect?

How do kids act when they don’t practice self-discipline? Give examples.

How can family members become strong like the mighty evergreen tree?

What is one practical thing you each can do to increase your self-respect?

Write it down. Make it a promise. Post it on the refrigerator.

The Family Meeting can guide your kids to become strong respectful people of character. It only takes 30 minutes a week. If your kids are like most kids, they watch TV 23 hours a week. Do those programs build self-respect and character? The Family Meeting does. Make time for family meetings. I know you can.

Want to have your comments, questions, tips, and first name included in my next Family Meeting eBook? Just leave your comments below.

If spelling or grammar are problem, don't worry. I'll do the editing. To assure you of quality no links or objectionable material will be included.

I invite you to receive 80 Fun Activities to Share with Your Kids when you subscribe to my Free Parenting Newsletter at http://www.KidsDiscuss.com

Being on Jury Duty these past few days inspired me. I saw the fairness in our system. The lawyers were professional and respectful.

The judge respected the lawyers by letting them lay out the case and she respected the jurors in the manner she gave us several instructions. She never gave us her impressions or tried to sway us in any way.

The jury, without knowing each other, came together to discuss and make decisions. Each member took the task seriously and we made the best decisions we could with the information we had.

Kids enjoy slumber parties with their friends. Why not enjoy a slumber party within your family? Look inside to find out how.

Building character takes more than rules. It takes fun times together. A family slumber party will be remembered long after it is over. It will warm your hearts.

"The grass isn't greener on the 'other side. The grass isn't greener on your side. It's Greener where you water it." - Source Unknown

The Family Meeting:

To water the grass within your home, hold a family meeting to plan a family slumber party. Find out the answers to the following questions:

When shall we schedule it?

Which room is best for the party?

Who’ll get out the sleeping bags?

Who wants pop corn for the party?

Do you want to talk and giggle late into the night?

What else would you like to do at the party?

Conclusion for the Family Meeting:

Besides looking forward to the slumber party, realize how much you are teaching your children. They’ll learn to brainstorm good ideas, make group decisions, enjoy each other, and build a creative character too. Let the weekly family meeting help you parent with excellence. You can water the grass within your home.

How do you have family fun?

Additional Help:

Our Family Meeting Diary records your parenting skills and proves you helped your family grow with fun activities. Pick it up and play today.

Want to have your comments, questions, tips, and first name included in my next Family Meeting eBook? Just leave your comments below.

If spelling or grammar are problem, don't worry. I'll do the editing. To assure you of quality no links or objectionable material will be included.

Would you like to build a happy character in your kids? Even if your family lacks talent, have fun together. Create a music night. Look inside to find out how.

"How do you spell Love to your children? T.I.M.E " - Source Unknown

Hold a Family Meeting:

Don’t let your kids become shy, fearful of making mistakes, or feel their opinions don’t count. Loosen them up by planning a family music night.

Help your kids discuss the following:

Find a night that fits for everyone

Decide which kitchen utensil will be the microphone

Pick out the best music to play

Ask, “Who wants to sing?

Dance?

Clap to rhythm?

Whistle?

Mime a song?

Play an instrument?

On Family Music Night

When one round of songs is finished, take turns using the different ways to make music. Keep playing and exchanging until everyone has tried every method.

Become an orchestra. Pick the best song for everyone to express themselves together.

The family meeting helps everyone look forward to music night. When the members can be silly, express themselves without criticism, and have fun together, your family will be building a happy character within each person.

Additional Help:

Record your Family Meeting Discussion in our Family Meeting Diary. Years from now read your Family Diary and remember how much fun you had.

Want to have your comments, questions, tips, and first name included in my next Family Meeting eBook? Just leave your comments below.

If spelling or grammar are problem, don't worry. I'll do the editing. To assure you of quality no links or objectionable material will be included.

Help your kids discuss family fun events before it’s too late. Don’t know how? Find out with the power of family meetings to bond your family with fun activities like the one below. It builds character too.

The Family Meeting

The thunder is roaring. The lightning is crackling. Enjoy the dark with candles. This is the time to create pleasant memories.

Discuss how to prepare for storm events:

Talk about what it was like before the light bulb

Plan a candle light game night

Talk about safety and candles

Ask who will find the candles?

Find out which board games the family enjoys?

Where are they stored?

Will there be cookies?

Who will get them?

The Family Meeting is perfect for planning family fun and building character. When the power goes out, light the candles. You don’t have to wait for thunder and lightning. Get your kids to discuss how to have family fun now.

Why not pretend the power is out tonight? Enjoy your kids.

What does your family do when the power goes out?

Additional Help:

Pick up the Family Meeting Diary to keep a log of your family meetings. Years from now, it will become your family memory book. Why not start today?